


Five Times Ben Stood By the Sidelines, and One Time He Didn’t Have To

by Not_on_my_books



Category: The Umbrella Academy (Comics), The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: 5+1 Things, Angst, Ben Hargreeves is a Good Brother, Brotherly Love, Child Abuse, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Klaus Hargreeves Deserves Better, Klaus Hargreeves Needs A Hug, Mental Illness, Multi Chapter, No Incest, Protective Ben Hargreeves, SO MUCH DAMN ANGST, Sibling Bonding, Verbal Abuse, Whump
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-09
Updated: 2019-05-31
Packaged: 2019-11-13 17:33:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,818
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18035819
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Not_on_my_books/pseuds/Not_on_my_books
Summary: Or, the one where Klaus gets hurt a shit ton and Ben can’t do anything but watch until he can.





	1. One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The one where Ben is dead, and Klaus can't see him, until he can.

_One_

Ben noticed many things.  One reason for this may have been his silent nature, always doing more observing than talking. He had never been the biggest fan of talking, happier to just watch and listen on the sidelines. It didn’t make him feel lonely or anything, he simply enjoyed to observe people and their behavior and found he learnt a lot by doing so.

None of his siblings, for example, conversed the same.

There was Luther, who stood tall with authority and never let his voice waver without confidence when he spoke. There was also Allison, who held herself with a composed and self-assured manner. He did notice however, that the two of them became significantly less proper and spoke more gently when around each other.

Then there was Diego, whom when he was a young child was very timid and spend a lot of time with their Mother. As he grew up, Ben noticed the changes in Diego and found that his brother had grown up immensely and gained a large amount of confidence once overcoming his battle with his stutter.

There was then Number Five and Vanya; both private people, yet vastly different in their own ways. Five always had this vibe when he spoke that made you feel like he was better than (which honestly, Ben wouldn’t be surprised if it was true). He had always known his potential, unlike Vanya, who approached everything in life unsurely. Left out of everything, never socializing, never _smiling._ It wasn’t a surprise that she turned out to be the most anti-social of the siblings.

And then there was Klaus.

He was so sweet and vulnerable as a child, always caring for people’s safety and trying to make the most out of their dreadful lives with terrible jokes and hugs. It wasn’t till after Klaus’ first training with their father, Sir. Reginald Hargreeves, that he started to change. He spent an entire weekend away without any warning, leaving all of his siblings wondering where he went. Ben didn’t have to be observant to see the obvious change once Klaus got back. His smiley self turned into a subdued and scared child. He would shake for days on end and mutter to himself all the time. He began having night terrors almost every night while the rest of them lay awake, helplessly listening to his whimpers and screams.

Ben remembered the nights he spent sneaking out of his room to aid his brother; how often he found him under the sheets of his bed, covering his ears and muttering something about ‘them’ being ‘angry’. He didn’t understand, not at first, but the constant nervous glances and staring at things that weren’t there didn’t make it too hard for Ben to understand.

And so he told himself that he was going to do his best to help Klaus get through it and to always stick by his side. So that Klaus could go back to telling terrible jokes and giving out hugs.

As it turns out, it’s not the easiest thing to do when you unexpectedly die.

It wasn’t anybody’s fault when it happened; it just did. He was on a dangerous mission with Luther one day and he had hesitated – Ben never wanted to hurt or kill people, which ended up being his downfall. He didn’t want to get in too many details but it certainly was gruesome.

The first thing Ben became aware of when he died was that it was cold.

He then became aware that he was alone.

Then that he felt light.

It wasn’t too hard to put the rest of the pieces together after that.

Ben didn’t weep for himself but rather for his family. When their father had received a call that his sixth child was found dismembered in an alleyway downtown, he shed tears at the lack of reaction or sorrow that came from the older man. He was upset, of course, but it seemed he was more upset that one of his experiments had failed rather than his own son being dead. Then when the news traveled back to his siblings, he broke down alongside Luther, Diego, and Allison. Five had been missing for the past six months and he had never been able to see Vanya’s reaction, though he assumed she must have reacted a little bit like his first three siblings did.

Klaus was the last to hear about the news and he took it much harder than the rest. He spent hours upon hours locked up in his room, completely destroyed by Ben’s death. Ben knew that ever since Klaus had returned from the mausoleum – which Ben only knew because Klaus had told him in confidence – the others had put a distance between themselves and their brother. He was deemed as the weakest of the bunch by their father, and so his siblings, who did everything to please their dad, took their distance from him. The only one who stood by his side had been Ben, which was why his death took the biggest toll on him.

_Klaus padded out of his room, his little footsteps padding against the creaking wooden floor. He had heard muffled voices and crying downstairs and he wanted to find out what was wrong. He carefully made his way down the long hallway and down the even longer stairs to be met with the sight of his most of his family – he absentmindedly noticed Vanya’s absence, but that wasn’t uncommon - huddled up in the entrance of the mansion. They were all visibly upset and were hugging each other tight, almost as if they would never see each other again if they let go._

_Luther, Diego, and Allison were there. Even Pogo and Mom. The strangest part about the entire thing however, was that his father was there as well. He hardly ever left his office unless he was accompanying one of them out on a mission, took them for training, or dinner was ready._

_“Uh..hi?” he called out, shyly stepping forward when everyone’s attention turned to him “why is everyone here?”_

_None of his siblings replied to his question. It was almost as if they wanted to but were hesitant to say anything and Klaus wasn’t sure if it was because of their father’s presence or if they were simply scared to say something. He glanced to Pogo and Mom in hopes for an answer, but they both just silently shook their heads._

_The atmosphere felt tense and odd, and Klaus couldn’t help but wish Ben was beside him right now so he didn’t feel so out of place. At the thought of his brother, Klaus furrowed his brow and realized it was also odd that he wasn’t amongst them. Shouldn’t he be back from his mission by now?_

_“...where’s Ben? Gu-”_

_“Number six will not be coming back.” The cold voice of Sir.Hargreeves interrupted, face expressionless like stone._

_A beat of silence passed._

_“Why not?”_

_“Oh honey,” his mother’s sickeningly sweet voice was filled with remorse, “Ben has passed.”_

_Klaus face morphed into one of deep confusion. What did she mean ‘passed’? Did he have some kind of test?_

_“What do you mean-“_

_“He’s dead.” His father interrupted once more, this time frowning as if an inconvenience had just occurred, “truly unfortunate, that boy had a large amount of potential.”_

_It took a moment for his father’s words hit, but when they did, wet, shell-shocked eyes looked up at the man a few feet in front of him._

_“W-what,” Klaus barely choked out, swallowing audibly. It couldn’t be true..._

_“All of you-” Sir. Hargreeves began, “- will go back to your rooms at once. Dinner will be ready within the hour and I expect you all to join without a fuss. Now go,” he gruffly gestured to the direction of their bedrooms before turning around on his heels and making a quick exit for his office doors, not once giving his children a second glance._

_There was another beat of silence before Allison turned around to weep in Luther’s shoulder. Diego stood closely beside them, close to tears as well._

_It was as if time went in slow motion after that._

_Klaus wasn’t entirely sure when Pogo or Mom exited the room, nor how long he stood there. He vaguely remembers somebody grabbing onto his shoulders and pulling him into a tight hug (it was Diego, he thinks). He wasn’t too sure how he ended up back in his bedroom either or what happened at dinner that night, or if he even slept. The rest of the evening became nothing but an agonizing blur in Klaus’ mind._

_What was sure about though was that his brother, his anchor, his_ best friend _, was_ dead _._

_Just like that, Klaus’ world was destroyed and so it seems was he._

_And Ben was there to watch it all._

Ben knew that Klaus could see ghosts. He spent days by Klaus’ side, watching him go about his day in hopes that maybe his brother would be able to see him but he _didn’t._ He didn’t really understand why and he absolutely _hated_ it. He would still spend his nights alone in his room under the covers to drown out the voices, but this time Ben could do nothing but watch. He wanted to help Klaus so badly but he couldn’t and he had never felt more helpless in his ~~after~~ life.

It took two months for Klaus to finally see Ben. Neither of them knew how or why it took so long, but it happened around the same time that Klaus had begun experimenting with drinking and pills. He thinks that maybe something about the drugs triggered Klaus’ brain into being able to see him but Ben wouldn’t be able to confirm that.

It hurt, it really did, to see his brother wasting away under the influence of the poison he was putting in his body. He was there the first time, when Klaus and Diego and Luther decided to steal a bottle of whiskey out of their father’s liquor cabinet.  He was there when that same night, Klaus slept in peace for the first time in months. He was there when Klaus went back the next day and stole that same entire bottle for himself and hid it in his room underneath his bed.

He watched as Klaus drank himself to sleep every night, trying to keep the spirits at bay with warm liquor. The liquor then escalated to pills when Klaus snuck out the house one night and got introduced to the wrong crowd. He was there on the good nights, and he was there on the bad nights, when Klaus ran out of a fix. Panting, sweating, and screaming himself into sheer exhaustion.

He was there, and he watched.

And it tore him apart to watch his baby brother struggling with something he could not control.

So when Ben watched Klaus tear his room apart, searching left and right any single morsel of drugs that may be left, he knew it was going to be a long, dark night.

 

* * *

 

“Fuuuck,”

Klaus cussed and tugged at his hair in frustration. Ben was used to watching this kind of behaviour coming from his brother at this point, but that didn’t mean he didn’t like it any less than he did. Klaus hadn’t been sober for the past three to four days and it seemed in his drugged state he hadn’t noticed how quickly he had gotten through his stash. He didn’t have any money, Ben knew that because he saw Klaus spend the rest of it on pills a week ago, and there was no way he’d be able to sneak any liquor in his room as their father was occupying the cabinet for the night.

Another groan emitted from Klaus as he finally stood still in the center of the room, head down resignation. His hands had already begun to tremble and sweat made its way down his forehead. It seemed that Klaus was in the beginning stages of withdrawal.

Either that or his fear of the dead was beginning to settle in.

The only light in the room came from a small, worn down lamp beside Klaus’ bed. The main light switch had been cut by Sir.Hargreeves, claiming that Klaus would never get over his fear of the dead if he didn’t spend time with them, alone and in the dark.

A horrible theory, really.

But then again, Sir.Hargreeves wasn’t really known for his A+ parenting.

There were a lot of reasons that their father didn’t necessarily make father of the year, but the way he neglected his children took top spot on Ben’s list. Even after Five’s disappearance and Ben’s death, he continued to treat each one of them like they were subjects. Maybe if he paid more attention, he would notice something going on with his Fourth child. That he was rarely sober anymore, often distressed, and had become _oh so fragile._

Or maybe he did.

Neglect, after all, was often a far worse punishment than abuse.

Ben suppressed a sigh from his spot on top of the aged wardrobe, his musings interrupted by a quiet whimper that seemed ever so loud in the silent room. He learnt a while ago that there was no point in trying to interact with Klaus because he wouldn’t be able to see or hear him anyway. He also learnt that the ghosts Klaus _did_ see were never the friendliest and he completely understood why his brother would want to escape from them. That didn’t mean however that he thought the drugs and alcohol were a good alternative, but he did understand, and he would never judge him. Judgement wasn’t what he needed.

The next two or so hours went by relatively quickly. Klaus moved positions from the floor to the bed and he sat against the headboard with a pair of large headphones on top of his head. The music could be heard through the headphones indicating that Klaus had turned up the volume quiet high and he was lightly humming along to whatever song he was listening to. His fingers were fiddling with the wires of his headphones and his eyes were twitching even though they were closed; both nervous habits that Ben had picked up on while observing his brother every day since his death.

There were a pair of nasty looking ghosts who appeared about half an hour in, standing by the closed door of his room. They were both men who looked like they were shot in the side of the head; their faces were almost completely disfigured, more than half of it missing. They had been screaming out in pain since they arrived, and Ben was thankful that Klaus had yet to open his eyes or take off his headphones. The sight of them gave him the shivers.

Another dismembered woman joined them about an hour and fifteen in. She was an older lady dressed in a bloody cloak and was missing both of her hands. She was sobbing it what seemed to be a different language – maybe German? – and Ben spent a good ten minutes avoiding her after he accidently made eye contact and she tried to talk to him.

It was when that two hour mark hit that Klaus started to dose off, content in the comfort of his bed and his headphones. He was still sweating and trembling slightly due to the lack of drugs in his system, but he seemed overall better than normal. Ben felt relieved that his brother was going to be able to get a good night’s sleep.

Unfortunately, the relief was short lived when the headphones suddenly stopped playing music and Klaus’ eyes shot open in panic.

Frantic fingers instantly tried to find the phone the headphones were connected too. His breathing came out shallow as the dark screen of his phone displayed that it had died and needed to charge.

“Shit shit shit,” panic was evident in Klaus' voice, his thin arms reaching around to look for his charger but to no avail.

“ _Shit_!”

He cussed once more and once again tugged at his hair. He sat up and messily threw the blankets off of his body and stood up off the bed. At the commotion, the ghosts noticed Klaus and turned their attention straight to him. Their wails got louder as he fell to his knees and blindly reached around to find his missing possession.

Ben looked down at him, arms crossed against his chest, a deep frown on his features. He wished he could do something, _anything_ , to help. Anything he had tried in the past had been fruitless and had made him feel hopeless.

Never the less, Ben couldn’t stand to just sit there and watch.

“You lent it to Diego, you won’t find it.” he spoke out, hardly expecting Klaus to react.

Klaus flinched, his breathe hitching. Bloodshot eyes glanced around the room for a couple of moments before settling directly onto Ben.

Two pairs of bewildered eyes locked onto one another.

“ _Oh hell no_ ,”

Klaus’ reaction was instantaneous; he grabbed onto the nearest blunt object he could find, which happened to be his phone, and aimed it for the figure on top of his wardrobe, headphone flying in tow. Ben hardly flinched as the device went straight through him, his mind more focused on the fact that _Klaus could see him._

Heaving panting was heard and the screams of the ghosts only getting louder and louder. Ben easily floated down from his spot and began to take cautious steps towards his startled brother. With every step forward Ben took, Klaus took one back.

A hesitant step, “Klaus, calm down. It’s me,”

A frightened sob, “Go away! This is _fucked_ up, don’t do this to me!”

“Klaus...”

“ _No_!”

“Quit freaking out, Klaus,”

_“Go away!”_

Ben didn’t know what to do. He had always wanted Klaus to see him, but now that it was happening, he almost wished it wasn’t. Seeing the fear and pain directed towards him _hurt._ In the back of his mind he hoped that they would have some sort of sickeningly sweet reunion, filled with tears of happiness and smiles.

Looking back Ben realized it was a pretty farfetched idea.

A long moment passed by where Ben simply stayed where he was and gave Klaus a moment to process everything. He was crying hard, sobs echoing through the room, and Ben wondered why his other siblings never bothered to check up on him. It took every fibre in his body to not want to walk up to his brother and hold him tight and shower him with comfort. Though he knew that even if he wanted to, he couldn’t anyway. He found out quiet quickly after his death that ghosts were unable to physically touch the living. In fact, Ben hadn’t had any contact with the living until right now.

He wasn’t about to let it go to waste.

And so his next words were spoken with caution.

“Klaus..  it’s me,” he whispered in the softest tone he could muster, “it’s Ben. See? Just look at me,”

Silence was given in response. Klaus rubbed at his face, his hand coming away wet, as he attempted to feign composure. He looked like a mess; his charcoal eyeliner was smudged under his eyes and created tear tracks down his face. He was teary eyed and his brows were furrowed so heavily Ben didn’t think it was possible for a person to look more miserable.

Klaus slowly raised his head and dared to look at Ben. His eyes travelled back and forth for a while before finally settling. He let out a mirthless chuckle, a sad, knowing smile adorning his lips.

“I knew my mind was messed up... but I didn’t think it was messed up enough to hallucinate about _my dead brother_ ,”

_Oh._

“Klaus... I’m not a hallucination,” His voice was calm, low, and careful.  

“Yeah, sure you’re not. If I touch you you’ll probably just disappear like the others do,”

That was a first. Ben hadn’t known that Klaus had been suffering with hallucinations…

“What do you mean ‘others’? Do you, uh, see a lot of them?” webs of unknown questions twisted through Ben’s mind.

Klaus seemed hesitant to answer but did so anyway, “no, usually just voices… Telling me nobody would care if I disappeared. T-That it should’ve been me and not Ben. Sometimes I see dad or the others saying those things, which is how I know it’s a hallucination because they’re pretty alive.

Anyway… why am I even talking to you when you’re not real. Maybe it’s because you’re nicer,” Klaus blinked back the water that was collecting in his eyes once more.

“Okay…” Ben replied carefully, not too sure how to process this new information. He still had so many questions, but seeing Klaus like this, lungs and heart and brain all in agony, he knew it wasn’t the time to.

Right now, he needed to let his brother know that he was real and he wasn’t going to hurt him.

That he was real and he would keep him safe.

“Here,” he extended his arm as if going in for a handshake, “If I’ll leave if you touch me, see for yourself,”

A moment passed, and Ben could tell Klaus was uncertain.

“I promise you, I’m not a hallucination.” He continued, trying his best to display a small, reassuring smile on his face.

Wary emerald eyes searched brown, looking for the lie that hid between the cracks. Looking so desperately, almost wanting to _find_ that he was right, and that he’d never have the one person he needed. Because some part of him still screamed that he was alone. He’d always be alone.

And he found none.

Despite the ache in his heart and the pounding in his head, Klaus with careful and slow movements, allowed his arm to reach out to the extended hand.

And when they got so close to touching, so close that he swore he could feel the warmth of the other’s appendage, Ben’s hand went right through his.

He wasn’t hallucinating. It really _was_ Ben.

“You... you...”

Through cracked lips a choked sob made its presence known. Klaus looking up at Ben, so broken and distraught, the inklings of childhood and abandonment crawled back into his face. For a moment, he looked like the small child he was. His next words, something that Ben would never forget, ones that smashed his heart over and over again, trembled out through the tears that pearled on his lips.

_"Please don’t leave me again… I can’t do this alone,”_

And for once in his life, Ben felt totally and completely helpless as he watched Klaus, trembling, fall to the ground.

 

* * *

 

It had taken some coaxing on Ben’s part, but he finally managed to get Klaus to calm down. The ordeal took no less than a couple hours for Klaus to finally exhaust himself.

Klaus sighed, slumping more on the ground, head buried in his arms. Another sniffle came out, but he stubbornly held it back.  He was absolutely exhausted, his entire body giving into the sheer exhaustion and his mind as well. His heart rate returned to a normal pace and as did his breathing, although its pattern still came out ragged.

Ben observed his brother for a moment longer, before finally interrupting the silence.

“I would care, you know.”

A short pause, a quiet sniffle.

“...what?”

Ben sighed, blowing a heavy breath from his nose.

“I would care if you disappeared. Who else am I supposed to haunt?” he lightly joked, trying to bring out the Klaus he wished he could see.

There wasn’t even a smirk, a smile. Nothing.

Ben mimicked Klaus’ posture and sat down as close as he could beside his fatigued brother. His own arms crossed on his knees and he rested his chin on top of his cold hands, letting his eyes shut for a brief moment. The light from the sunrise coming through the window seemed to have driven out ghosts from Klaus’ bedroom; perhaps having grown bored of spending the entire night screaming, or perhaps leaving to go someplace darker.  

When Ben opened up his eyes again, he noticed Klaus’ looking at him. And to his surprise, despite his heavy eyes, his lips held a tiny smile.

“Yeah... I mean, haunting Luther would just make you die all over again,”

Ben stifled out a chuckle, “fair enough.”

A comfortable silence followed, until finally-

“I missed you...”

Ben smiled softly, “I missed you too little bro,”

“...promise you’ll stay with me?”

“I promise.”

And if the conversation ended there and Klaus quietly wiped away any leftover tears after that, Ben pretended not to notice. And if he finally, after a tiresome night, succumbed to the world of sleep, Ben didn’t say a word to disturb him. Even if all he could do was sit beside his brother in silence until he woke up, unable to hold him, he would stay. As long as when he awoke, he would be able to see that smile directed towards him once again.

And he supposed, for now, that was enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp, that’s it for the first chapter. Hopefully people will actually enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it!
> 
> I honestly haven’t loved character as much as Klaus in so long and I was so tempted to write my own story, so I did! I really love Klaus and Ben’s relationship in the show and I really wish we got to see more of it. I’m an angst kind of gal so expect a lot (and I mean a lot) of it in this fic.
> 
> And don't worry, Klaus will be a lot more Klaus-y in the next chapters! This is just how I imagine he would be before the drugs/when he first started as a kid.
> 
> I’ll do my best to update soon. xx


	2. Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The one where Klaus overdoses, Ben can't save him, and Diego is trying to be a good brother but (kinda) fails.

_Two_

Overdoses.

They were a very real and scary thing that every addict put themselves at risk for when taking drugs.

Ben thinks that Klaus is incredibly lucky to have never experienced an overdose considering how many drugs he’s been putting in his system over the past couple of years. He had been experimenting with drugs since he was thirteen years old, and just recently he celebrated his twentieth birthday.

Well if you consider passing out at a club by himself, piss drunk, as celebrating.

Klaus didn’t seem to care about what he was putting in his body anymore, as long as it kept him high. Ben had seen it all; cocaine, acid, heroin. You name it, and Klaus had tried it. That didn’t mean that Ben approved of any of it, in fact he often pestered Klaus to try and get sober and to get the proper help he needed.

_“You really have to stop with this shit, Klaus.”_

_“Meh, sobriety is totally overrated,”_

_A sigh._

“ _Yeah, and so is dying,”_

_A sad smile followed._

_“Just gotta find that out myself then, don’t I?”_

_..._

No matter what Ben said or tried, he just couldn’t get through to Klaus. It had escalated into a couple of fights throughout the year but nothing that kept Ben from still trying. There wasn’t much he could do other than watch when Klaus walked off into the dark alleyway or towards the sketchy car with a disapproving stare. His words never got through to him, and it wasn’t like he could just punch the pills out of his mouth.

The first year away from the Academy had been the hardest. He had left a couple of months after he turned seventeen and had nowhere to go. For a short while, he stayed with Diego, who had left the Academy as soon as he turned seventeen. The two of them were never too close but Diego didn’t have it in his heart to leave his brother with nowhere to go – especially not when he had showed up, practically begging, for somewhere to stay on that rainy night.

Unfortunately the dry roof and warm dinners didn’t last too long. During his stay Klaus was getting high and disturbing Diego 24/7. Diego would leave to Police Academy for his training, and when he’d come back, he’d be met with the sight of Klaus, half naked in the couch with a couple bottles of liquor and a half eaten plate of food on the floor.  The living room would be a mess, the TV too loud, and occasionally some random man would be leaving from the bathroom or helping himself to whatever was in the fridge.

Needless to say, Diego got sick of Klaus’ behaviour and kicked him out after the third week.

Klaus had no money. He had no connections. No friends. Nothing.  Despite it all, he refused to go back to the Academy and resorted to living on the streets instead.  He scraped together any food and he could find – often digging through trash cans or stealing – and any cash he got his hands on were instantly spend on more drugs. Oftentimes there were more drugs in his body than food and water. He truly didn’t understand how his behaviour hadn’t caused him to overdose yet.

He supposed it was dumb luck.

And unfortunately, there comes a time when luck runs out...

 

* * *

 

 

“ _Damn_ that’s goood,”

Klaus sprawled himself over the dusty leather couch, exposing his lean, too thin stomach to the world as he did so. A carefree grin spread across his face as he brought one hand to rub the nose that had just snorted a long line of coke off the equally as dusty table.

They were currently in a small side room attached to a rave party on the other side. Muffled music could be heard from the other room and the lights were dimmed. Klaus wasn’t the only one in the room, however. Other than Ben himself, there was a man who looked around the same age as them sitting beside his brother. He had dark features and wore a dark leather jacket with green neon pants. The man was currently rolling up a messy joint on the table and once he was done, he put it in between his lips and took a long drag.

“It _is_ good, ain’t it,” his voice was deep and gruff, “you know what would be even better?”

He passed the joint to Klaus who gratefully took it.

“What?”

“You and me baby, getting so high, then me fucking you till you _scream,_ ”

Ben snorted from the other side of the room, “I don’t think I’ve ever heard something more romantic,”

Klaus eyes shot over at him, “shhh!” he whispered harshly, bringing his finger up to his lip for extra exaggeration.

Ben rolled his eyes and stifled a chuckle at the nameless man’s obvious confusion but Klaus didn’t pay any mind. He simply turned back around and flashed a trademark grin, bringing the joint up to his lips and puffing the air in the man’s direction.

“Oh _darling_ , I’d like nothing better,”

The man dismissed Klaus’ previously odd behaviour and smirked back at him. He leaned forward and captured Klaus’ lips in a harsh kiss, gripping Klaus’ face tightly in one hand while the other found its way onto his thigh, slowly creeping higher and higher.

Ben had seen this type of scene so many times it hardly bothered him anymore. Most of the time he opted to just stay in the corner he usually occupied, but sometimes he would leave the room if it was about to get _really_ frisky. But Ben was used to it; to men taking advantage of Klaus, and for Klaus to so easily give up his body to others.

He supposed a reason for that could be all the neglect he had endured as a child. How little physical affection he got from his family and how perhaps now he craved it. How it makes him feel special, like somebody cares. Like somebody wants him.

Like somebody could love him.

Klaus broke apart the kiss and pushed gently on the other’s stomach to get him to back off. For a moment, the guy looked confused, until Klaus started to speak.

 “I’m parched. Why don’t you get us some drinks, and when you’re back, I’ll be here waiting,” he all but purred in his ear, his tongue licking the shell of the man’s ear.

The man, who was obviously aroused, could do nothing but nod. He grinned and moved to squeeze up higher on Klaus’ thigh before standing up and straightening himself out. Klaus sat up more comfortably in the couch and blew a kiss towards the man.

“Don’t be too long,” he added with a wink.

And then the man left, leaving Klaus and Ben alone once more.

A moment passed before either of them spoke.

“So,” Klaus threw his leg over the other and sat back in the couch, one arm resting on the armrest and the other holding the joint in the air, “you staying for the show, or not? You’re pretty lucky y’know, getting front row seats and all. I mean, who wouldn’t want a piece of all this?” he gestured to himself with his arm.

Ben scoffed and shook his head, arms moving from his pockets to cross his chest, “Uh yea, no thanks. Don’t really feel like being traumatized tonight,” he joked.

Klaus gasped loudly and sat up straight in a dramatic movement, eyes wide and eyebrows crinkled together, “What do you mean ‘ _traumatized_ ’? Am I really _that_ bad in bed?” he wiped a fake tear.

“Oh my _God,_ shut up.”

“Okay. Only ‘cause you asked so nicely,”

Klaus hummed to himself as he put out the blunt on the ashtray in the center of the table. He wiped his hand on his ripped jeans and then reached over to grab a previously discarded baggie filled with white powder inside.

Ben sighed quietly and watched as Klaus gently shake the bag’s containments onto the table, using both of his pinkies to organize the powder into a messy line. He fiddled around with it for a moment, staring intently at his task at hand, before jumping back with an accomplished smile,

“Ha! Nice.” He praised to himself, raising both of his hands and giving himself a self high-five.

Ben’s eyebrows crinkled and he moved one hand to wipe down his face, suppressing a deep sigh, “You’ve already had two lines, a couple of drinks, and two joints, and you have another drink coming. Shouldn’t you cut it out for a second?”

Klaus blinked at him then smiled, “Hey, don’t worry so much. I’m just having some fun bro.”

“Yeah, it’s always fun until I’m the one who has to get your ass back safely,”

Ben used the word _back_ instead of _home,_ because the homeless shelter he was staying at most days certainly wasn’t a home.

“I never asked you to do that though,” Klaus pouted back at him.

“Someone’s gotta do it – you sure won’t,”

Puppy dog eyes stared at unamused ones for a moment before puppy eyes rolled and crossed their arms in resignation.

“Fiiine.” He groaned as if it was the biggest inconvenience in the world.

Ben sighed in relief.

“Thank you.” He smiled.

A couple of seconds passed in silence, and then-

“Hahah, psyche!”

And in a quick moment the line of cocaine on the table disappeared.

“Klau-“ Ben started but stopped himself mid sentence as he realized it was useless, “ugh you know what, whatever. Don’t say I didn’t warn you. I’ll be over here if you need me.”

At that, Ben pushed himself off the wall he was leaning against, picked up a random book from the floor, and moved to sit on an old wooden chair situated behind the couch, and flipped open the book. From his spot, he could only see the back of Klaus’ head and part of his exposed arm. He certainly didn’t want ‘front row seats’ watching Klaus having sex, but he also didn’t want to leave Klaus when he was so drugged up and vulnerable alone with a stranger he met an hour ago. The man was all too eager to touch Klaus and Ben didn’t like that. Not one bit.

Ben lowered his book at the sound of a pained groan coming from Klaus, whom had been oddly silent for the past minute or so. He stared at the back of Klaus’ head that just rolled on the back of the couch and chuckled at him.

“Tired already?” he teased.

No response.

“Klaus?”

Nothing.

At the lack of a second response, Ben discarded his book and quickly stood up from the chair, making his way over to the front of the couch. Klaus looked _incredibly_ out of it. His eyes were lidded, body lax, and his head was lolled backwards, exposing his pale neck and fading hickies.

Another groan emitted from Klaus as he weakly brought one hand to clutch at his chest as if it was in pain. Ben’s worry grew larger as he noticed Klaus’ hands start to tremble.

“Klaus?” he asked once again, concern evident in his voice.

The trembling in his hands quickly escalated to his arms and legs and entire body. Within a couple of seconds, he had begun trembling so hard Ben felt his concern turn into panic.

Panic turned into fear when he realized that Klaus was having a _seizure._

“Oh shit,”

He moved his hands as if he wanted to touch Klaus, to hold him close, but stopped himself.

“Oh _shit_ ,” he repeated in a more panicked tone.

Ben didn’t know what to do. He had always figured that one day Klaus would take too many drugs, but he never thought about what to do when it inevitably did. What _did_ people do when one was having a seizure? He couldn’t touch Klaus, nor could he call out for help.

Where the fuck was the man from earlier and why wasn’t he back by now?

Klaus’ breathing had become ragged and irregular at this point, his face scrunched up in pain as his body shook with convulsions. Ben sat himself beside Klaus on the couch and hovered his hands over Klaus’ face, wanting so desperately to be able to touch him.

“Breathe Klaus, breathe,” he all but yelled, “you need to breathe. You’re gonna be okay,”

He didn’t actually know if that fact was true.

“Shhh Klaus. I’m here,”

“Someone help!”

“Stop fucking shaking damnit,’

“I’m here,”

_“Help us!”_

No matter what he did and how hard he yelled, Klaus didn’t calm down and nobody came. Ben felt a sob rising up in his stomach at both the situation and how useless he felt. God, he was so fucking useless. His brother was overdosing right in front of him and there was absolutely nothing he could do to help.

“I’m sorry...” he cried out weakly, allowing tears to pool and run down to his chin.

He was just so sorry. Sorry that Klaus was going through this, sorry that he couldn’t help him, sorry that had _died_.

Just then, Klaus’ spasms started to slow until they reverted back to a small tremble. Ben breathed a shaky sigh of relief and stood up from the couch to stand directly in front of his brother.

“Klaus...” he whispered, tear tracks staining his face, “please say something.”

For a feeble moment, Ben thought Klaus had heard and acknowledged his words when he lifted his head to look up at Ben with wet eyes. Through his own tears, he hadn’t noticed his brother was crying too, from the pain no doubt. That moment, however, was quickly ruined when Klaus heaved over and bile went straight through Ben and onto the floor. Ben felt himself flinch backwards; even though it was impossible for him to be hit, it still caught him off guard.

And then suddenly, Klaus’ body tumbled forward off of the couch and into his vomit pile on the floor, body completely still.

Unmoving.  And not breathing.

Was he... dead?

Ben couldn’t believe this was happening...

Please don’t let him be dead...

A door burst open.

“Hey babe I’m ba- oh _shit,”_

The man from earlier held two drinks in his hands. He awkwardly stood at the doorway.

“Yo, you okay dude?”

No response.

What happened next went by in a blur.

Footsteps. Crouching. Checking for a pulse. Shouting. A phone call. More footsteps. Sirens.

There was shouting and chaos blurring all around them. The paramedics arrived at some point but Ben couldn’t tell when. Time, for a moment, seemed to stand still. But time in actuality, as it has a terrible habit of doing, went on.

_“One... two... three... Clear!”_

All he could do was stand there and watch. He retreated into the corner of the overly crowded room to allow space for the people helping his brother. Even though it didn’t matter either way, it was the least he could do, to stay out of the way.

_“Clear!”_

More running, shouting, words of danger and warnings and calls from people who simply couldn’t come fast enough.

_“Again!”_

He continued to watch helplessly from the sidelines.

_“Clear!”_

And he prayed to whatever God above that they were spare his brother, since that was all he could do.

...

_“One, t- wait“_

...

_“We have a pulse!”_

_..._

_“We have to get him to the hospital now!”_

...

...

...

It was only until after everybody had left that Ben finally dared to move.

“...fuck.”

 

* * *

 

 

When Klaus awoke, he noticed that it was bright. Very, very bright. And white.

The next thing he noticed was that he was warm and comfortable. Odd. Normally he woke up feeling like he was part of the dead he oh so loved to spend time with.

 _“Where am I...?”_ Klaus thought to himself, bringing an arm up to block the light from his eyes.

“You’re in the hospital.” A nearby voice responded.

Huh. He didn’t realize he said that out loud.

“Hospital? Huh.” he asked, arm slowly moving away from his eyes so he could see his surroundings.

The room he was in was small, white, and clean. There was a small window on the right and an empty chair directly in front of it. He absentmindedly noticed the IVs sticking into his arms and the sound of a steady heartbeat monitor.

When he turned his head, he noticed a figure sitting on a chair by the door. He squinted his eyes to get a better look and recognized the figure as Ben. He must have been the one who spoke to him just now too.

“Huh.” He repeated, head suddenly pounding, “Why?”

“What do you mean why? You _overdosed_ last night, Klaus.”

“Oh. Well shit.”

“Yeah, _shit_ is right. What the _fuck_ were you thinking?! You could’ve _died_ – in fact, you did!”

“...Huh.” was all Klaus seemed to say.

Ben made an agitated sound, his face morphed into one of anger and disappointment. He looked like he was ready to completely chew out Klaus for his stupidity, but before he could get another word in, there was a knock on the door.

“Mr. Hargreeves?” A muffled voice called from behind the door, before the door was slowly opened.

Through the door came a nurse dressed in blue scrubs, holding a tray of food. She smiled gently and walked up beside Klaus’ bedside, putting down the food on his empty bedside table before checking a couple of the monitors.

“I brought you some breakfast,” she said, stepping backwards to be able to speak to Klaus. “Mr.Hargreeves, do you remember what happened?”

Klaus stared at her for a moment, blinking slowly.

“Yeah. I overdosed.”

“That’s right. You suffered from a seizure followed by a cardiac arrest. Your heart stopping beating for at least five minutes. How you survived it, let alone are awake right now, without any brain damage, is a miracle.”

Klaus’ eyes widened as he processed what the nurse told him. He slowly shifted his eyes to look at Ben and was met with a disapproving. It was nothing he wasn’t used to seeing, except this time, it hit him ten times harder.

He really had fucked up this time.

“I know this might be a lot to process right now so please take your time.” The nurse said causing him to shift his attention back to her.

 “I should also let you know that we called your emergency contact last night,” she continued, “He stayed the night waiting for you to wake. He’s in the hallway outside the room right now. Would you like to talk to him?”

Klaus slowly nodded his head, “okay.”

The nurse offered him a kind smile before shuffling away and shutting the door on her way out. Muffled conversation could be heard from outside the door for a short moment, and then the door opened again.

This time the person who walked in was Diego.

He hadn’t change much since the last time they saw each other. He had cut his hair for one, but still wore full black leather. He also looked worn out and tired as if he had stayed up all night waiting for Klaus to wake up – which he probably did.

“Diego! Brother, what a surprise!” Klaus chirped happily, struggling for a moment to sit up in his bed after his body had been asleep for so long.

“Hey, Klaus. How are you feeling?” He asked softly, walking in and dragging a chair close up by the hospital bed.

“Well I can certainly say I’ve felt better,” Klaus joked with a small grin. Despite the smile on his lips, his eyes were heavy and his body seemed to hardly support him sitting up.

Diego huffed with a smirk of his own, “So I can see. You hungry?” He nodded to the tray of food beside him.

Klaus took one look at the tray and scrunched his nose in disgust, “ugh, hungry yes – hungry for hospital food? Not so much.”

Diego rolled his eyes at his brother. “How about I bring you something then?”

Klaus’ eyes lit up, “Waffles!” he all but exclaimed, “Oh please Diego, it’s been so long and they’re just so heavenly!”

Diego chuckled and shook his head, “Sure thing.”

At those two words, Klaus let out a small _“yay”_ and clapped his hands like a small child would when their parents told them they could have that new toy they’ve been staring at for days.

Diego smiled at the childlike display before they lapsed into silence. His smile soon went downcast and was replaced with a frown. Klaus seemed to notice the change in demeanor and smiled tentatively.

“Did I say something wrong?” he asked.

Diego breathed a deep breath out of his nose. He looked sullen.

“No, of course not Klaus. It’s just- why? Why did you do it?”

Klaus’ lips quirked downwards, “Why I did what?”

“Why did you _die_? I mean, did you want to?”

“Of course not Diego. It was an accident.”

“...the nurse told me how many drugs were found in your system. Any normal person would, _should_ be dead. This is how much people take when they _want_ to overdose. “

Klaus’ face fell, “Well... We aren’t normal, are we?”

Diego stood up off his chair in a quick movement and punched the wall beside him, causing Klaus to flinch, not expecting such a violent reaction.

“That isn’t the point, the _point_ is that there is no way you didn’t know how many drugs you had taken in the past twenty four hours and you don’t even _care_.”

“I do ca-“

“No you don’t!”

Diego placed a hand on his forehead as if to steady himself, breathing heavily. He was frowning so hard it looked like he was giving himself a headache. He turned his head away from Klaus.

“You don’t care. You don’t care about yourself, about consequences, or about how your actions affect other people. Grow up Klaus, we’re adults now. Stop fucking lying to yourself and dicking around and get your life together. Because I can’t help you if you don’t help me first.”

A brief pause.

Klaus swallowed hard, trying to stanch the feeling of guilt that quickly rose within him.

“Diego...“

“Just don’t Klaus.” He said in hardly a whisper. “There was a reason nobody wanted to be around you when we were kids, you know.”

And at that, Diego left, leaving his visit short and bitter.

Klaus leaned his head backwards and shut his eyes, willing for them to remain dry. There was a dull ache in his heart. He breathed, then again, and then again. 

And then he turned to look at Ben.

His brother no longer looked like he wanted to scold the living shit out of him, so that was a good sign. Instead his face held something akin to sympathy; pity maybe? Klaus couldn’t tell, and he didn’t know if he wanted to.

He knew he had disappointed both Ben and Diego. He knew that he had acted stupidly and he deserved the rebuke. It was what he did best – he was the fuck up of the family, as Luther had kindly put it. But he knew it was true. He was sure that one day soon, if not after today, Diego would stop caring about him like all his other siblings had ages ago.

The only person Klaus truly had was Ben, and he wasn’t even sure if he’d stick around if he wasn’t dead and wasn’t his only source of communication with the living.

“Dumbass, you know I would never leave you alone.”

Oh, had he said that out loud? He was doing that a lot lately.

“Ah...” His adams apple bobbed up and down the pale column of his throat “...I didn’t mean to say that out loud,”

“I know.”

Ben stood up from the chair and made his way closer to Klaus. The way Ben was looking at him was almost unnerving. He wasn’t used to this - he was used to scorns, frowns, and disappointment. Harsh glares and despondence. Not this. He almost _wanted_ Ben to be disappointed, because he _did_ disappoint him.

But kind, sweet, and hopeful Ben just looked at him with consideration.

The look alone made Klaus’ heart want to break all over again.

“I’d yell at you too,” he started, all previous anger discarded and replaced with a tone of softness, “but I think Diego did a good enough job for the both of us.” he finished with a small, sad chuckle.

Klaus attempted a chuckle of his own but it ended up sounding more like groan.

A moment of silence passed.

...

“... I’m sorry Klaus.”

Klaus frowned, “Why are you sorry?”

Ben sighed heavily, “For not being able to help you. I wish – God, I just felt so helpless, you know? I’m so angry... was... I mean, earlier. At myself. Not you. I – I just...” he stammered on the worlds that rambled out, sighing once again in frustration.

“I just... how can I keep you safe like I promised when I can’t even _touch_ you.”

...

“Ben... if it wasn’t for you, I – I need you.” Klaus’ voice was hardly a whisper, “You don’t need to put all this responsibility on yourself. You haven’t failed me or anything, I promise you that.”

Although the answer didn’t seem to completely satisfy Ben, he sighed in resignation and offered a small smile. Klaus reciprocated the smile before they once again fell into silence.

Klaus felt his exhaustion creeping up on him. He was tired, hungry, and had a pounding headache. He didn’t want to be feeling all the emotions he was right now; he wanted to be numb again, but he couldn’t.

Maybe if he just closed his eyes for a moment...

He yawned, and of course this action did not go unmissed by Ben.

He observed his brother for a moment, taking in his messy curls and tired, bloodshot eyes. “Tired?”

“Yeah...” came the quiet response.

Ben nodded and placed a hand on the pillow beside Klaus’ head.

 “Sleep then. I’ll be here when you wake up,”

Klaus nodded and rearranged himself so he was laying on his side, his body curled up under the thin hospital blanket. Within a couple of minutes he was out cold.

The conversation would have to be halted and continued another time. For now, all Ben could do was make sure his brother slept comfortably and soundly in a world that wanted to give him anything but.

 

* * *

 

 

Ben had been watching over Klaus in his sleep for well over a few hours. He watched nurses come and go, checking his monitors and IVs before idly leaving and continuing their jobs. Like always, time passed by rather slow and Ben had a lot of it on his hands. He often took the time to reflect and think, since well, he didn’t have much else to do.

It was around the third hour that Ben had started to doze off himself, floating in and out of conscience, when his peaceful silence was interrupted by a quiet knock on the door and then silence. Ben instantly opened his eyes and glanced at the door curiously, wondering who it could be, since the nurses usually knocked and came in right away.

The doorknob slowly and quietly turned to open but the person behind the door hesitated – leaving their hand on the turned doorknob but not quiet opening the door yet. And then, they pushed the door open and peeked inside.

It was Diego.

“Klaus?” the dark featured man called out in a whisper, receiving no response. He took one deep breath and pushed the door fully open.

Diego was carrying a brown paper bag with the “ _Griddy’s Doughnuts”_ logo printed on the front in one hand, while the other closed the door behind him. He stood by the doorway for a moment, his face expressionless.

Ben noticed that Diego looked significantly more worn out than he did when he saw him just a couple hours prior. His dark circles had almost doubled in size, his eyes heavier with emotion, and his posture was weaker. He held something unreadable on his face as he walked right up to Klaus’ bedside and put the paper bag next to his tray of untouched food.

Diego heaved a heavy sigh. For a moment, it looked as if Diego wanted to reach out and touch Klaus, to run his hands through his hair or caress his cheek.  Instead, he stood there and looked down at his sleeping brother’s face with one of stone.

Ben observed Diego while Diego observed Klaus. Ben knew that despite the cold exterior, Diego was being bombarded with a ball of emotion. He could see it in the way his eyes were so focused and slightly glassy. He wondered if he was feeling regretful like Klaus had because of their previous encounter, or if he felt as helpless as Ben had. Honestly, he wouldn’t be surprised if Diego was feeling both.

Diego took his eyes off of his sleeping brother for a moment and looked at the brown bag, “I brought you those waffles you wanted,” he started, his voice giving away the guilt in an instant.

He sighed, “You’re a dumbass, Klaus. But you’re my brother.”

Diego then reached out one hand real slowly and placed it onto Klaus’ head, running his hand through those soft curls ever so lightly before flinching back like he was burned. He looked away as if the sight of Klaus was causing him pain, looking like he had so much more to say but simply couldn’t find the words. Instead, he opted for what was easiest to do. To leave.

“Sleep well, little brother.”

And then Diego left, not glancing back to Klaus once, instead opening and closing the door so silently you would never know that he came.

And so, when Klaus awoke a couple of hours later and noticed the waffles on his bedside table, he smiled in delight and scarfed them down like a madman. And if he thanked and praised Diego as if he had forgotten all about the harsh words he was told earlier, Ben didn’t bring it up. And if they let him out the next morning with two different rehab pamphlets, Ben didn’t pressure Klaus into going.

If he wanted to, it would have to be his own decision, or else it would all be pointless. Ben was proud though, when Klaus’ first decision wasn’t to go out and buy drugs, but to get back to the homeless shelter and research the effects of an overdose.

Klaus still had a long way to go, but Ben would be there for him. Always.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was originally meant to be posted on Saturday, but since so many of you guys enjoyed the first chapter I figured I'd post it early as at thank you! I'll try to do an update every weekend, but with school and exams coming up we'll see.
> 
> I tried to write part of the chapter in Klaus' POV so let me know if you guys liked that and would like to see more of his perspective as well. Anyway, hope you enjoyed this chapter!
> 
> Also, if anyone has any prompts for this fic feel free to drop them in the comments or PM me. (: I have an idea for the next chapter but not the ones after that, so suggestions are welcomed. 
> 
> Till next time. xx


	3. Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The one where Klaus' debts come back to haunt him, and Ben can't find him in time to stop it.
> 
> (T/W for implied rape / rape aftermath)

_Three_

Klaus was no stranger to pain.

His whole life he had endured some form of it. As a kid, he was forcibly his father’s guinea pig – conducting horrible, painful, dreadful experiments on him – sometimes leaving him unable to sleep for weeks, _months._ He experienced a whole different kind of pain when Ben, his best friend, died at age thirteen. Then came the drugs and the stealing and sleeping around and the homelessness that came with it.

So yeah, Klaus was pretty used to pain. He knew just how much the world had of it and how the world wasn’t afraid to throw it all onto one person.

Maybe he sought out for it. His lifestyle wasn’t exactly prim and proper, and being on the streets no matter where you are in the city is never safe. The people and places he hung around weren’t exactly known to be the nicest either. Maybe he didn’t mind the rough hands and cruel words, because hey, at least someone was paying attention to him.

In a twisted and fucked up way, Klaus sought after it.  He loved the attention and the physical contact even if the other person never held his best intentions. He didn’t mind when strangers would come up to him without a word and grab onto his hips or his ass and later bring him back home. He didn’t mind the sex that always seemed to follow, the nasty slurs _–such a fucking slut huh?-,_ or even the ones who pulled his hair a little _too_ tightly. He didn’t mind it. Because at least, for a moment, he could focus on something other than the pain and just pretend, _just maybe,_ that it was something close to love.

Though Klaus knew what the world was like and never dwelled on those pretend feelings for too long.

Contrary to popular belief, Klaus tried not to engage in such activity too often. Not with his disapproving ghost bodyguard by the name of Ben watching his every move. He knew his bedroom habits bothered his brother, and even when the ghost could easily leave and return in a little while, he refused to leave Klaus alone for too long. Part of that irritated Klaus immensely, but another part was secretly grateful. He didn’t know where he’d be today if it wasn’t for Ben guiding him, and in another twisted and fucked up way, he felt safer knowing that Ben was in the same room while he had sex and when he let himself be vulnerable towards around other men.

Which in all honesty sounds weird to even himself when he said it out loud, but oh well. He could see the fucking dead and he has siblings who can manipulate knives and have superhuman strength. What is really weirder than that?

Despite it all, Klaus considered himself lucky in the terms that he had never been forced into a sexual act before. It had always be consensual on both ends, even if Ben sometimes worried that it hadn’t been. He supposed he had a lot of regrets and some shame _–especially when it came to selling his body for drugs-,_ but at least he had always consented. He knew it would be a lot more painful for himself if he tried to resist against the type of men who took interest in him anyway.

And what would be the point in making his life even more painful?

Though he supposed, with the way the world liked to fuck him in the ass _–no pun intended-,_ that choice wasn’t always his to make.

 

* * *

 

“Ugh I _hate_ the rain!”

A loud groan emitted from Klaus as he stomped through an upcoming puddle, successfully getting the water all over his pant leg – not that it mattered, seeing as how Klaus was already  soaked from head to toe. Beside him, Ben stifled a chuckle at the childish act and failed to hide the small smirk that appeared on his face.

Klaus stopped in his tracks and glared at his ghost brother, “what are you laughin’ at? You wouldn’t be laughing if you were suffering in the poor _cold_ rain too, you ass _!”_

Ben rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, “C’mon drama queen, the faster we get to the shelter the faster you can dry off.”

At his response, Klaus let out a long and over-exadurated sigh and mimicked his brother by crossing his arms.

“The shelter is at least an half an _hour_ away. I don’t know Ben, I don’t think I’m gonna make it.” He pouted out defiantly.

 “Okay, if you’re tired let’s make a stop. Somewhere you can warm up.” Ben contemplated for a moment, “and for the love of god stop pouting Klaus.”

Klaus only pouted more.

Ben sighed.

“Cmon then, let’s go let’s go.” He ushered his brother to continue using following motions as he made a slight turn to head towards a little coffee shop across the street.

Klaus and Ben entered the coffee shop and the first thing Klaus noticed and appreciated was the instant burst of warmth on their first step in. He let out a content sigh and glanced at his brother, silently wishing that he could feel the same warmth. He quickly shook his head and let the mournful thought exit his head. First things first – dry off. Then, coffee.

A quick change into a dry pair of pants and a hoodie that he kept in the worn backpack he dragged around in the bathroom and an order of two coffees for here _– which definitely earned him a strange glance from the barista –_ and he was set.  Klaus made himself comfortable in a booth table with Ben sitting across from him, sipping at his own coffee while Ben’s sat in front of him untouched. It was one of the weeks where Klaus had a little bit of extra change and didn’t mind paying a bit extra to get Ben something too, even if he knew it was pointless and technically a waste of money. There was a silent appreciation that both brothers felt and that was enough for Klaus.

With a slight tilt of his head and a loud gulp, Klaus set the now empty cup of coffee down and smiled widely at his brother who shared a smile of his own. Moments like these in Klaus’ life were rare – moments where he wasn’t _too_ broke, nor stressed. Sure, getting soaked in the rain kinda sucked and they were gonna have to go out there again but, all in all, the day had been good. He was in a good mood, had some good coffee, and he had Ben.

Klaus was sure that nothing could happen today to ruin his good mood.

Just as he was about to open his mouth to voice his thoughts, Ben cut him to it.

“Uh Klaus, don’t mean to freak you out but – those dudes have been staring at you for the past 10 minutes and _don’t look right now_ but they’ve started to whisper.”

In true Klaus fashion, he turned his head to where Ben was looking not-so-subtly and caught the eye of several gruff looking at him like he was a piece of meat.

“Oh _shit_ ,” Klaus hastily turned back to his brother where he was met with a worried glance, “don’t you recognize them? That’s Tony and his guys. I owe them like, two hundred bucks.”

“What?! Klaus what the fuck?” Ben screeched in response, his eyes widening and breath hitching.

“Shhh Jesus!” Klaus whispered in a hurry, placing his index fingers against his lips to further put his point across.

Ben made a face, “Klaus you’re literally the only one that can see or hear me, _shut up._ You look crazy.”

He pointed towards the couple at a table close to them who was shooting strange glances at Klaus.

 “I always look crazy.” he huffed in annoyance, ignoring the staring couple and sparing a quick (not so subtle) glance behind him once more before standing up in a haste, “we have to go, come on.”

Abandoning the second cup of coffee in its untouched place at the booth, Klaus shot a quick thanks to the barista and made an exit. The rain was still pouring but thankfully not as hard as it had been before.  

In one quick motion, he pulled up his hood, heaved his backpack onto one shoulder, and set off down the empty roads.

For the first minute or so, Klaus walked in silence. He kept his pace even and his eyes in front of him, trying to ignore the bubbling feeling in his stomach that was telling him to _fuckingrun_ and that something was wrong. Ben had been surprisingly silent too; if it wasn’t for the fact that he could hear his silent sniffling he would’ve thought he wasn’t there at all.

By the second minute, Klaus noticed a black car speed past him at an unruly speed, just barely avoiding completely splashing Klaus with water from the road on its way. Klaus grumbled a quiet _fuck you_ before lifting his head to get a closer look. It only took the car making a sudden u-turn to instill panic into Klaus as he silently cursed and made a quick left into a neighborhood and began to sprint

_Fuckfuckfuck._

The black car was quick to follow Klaus into the empty neighborhood, revving its engine in a sound that would not normally feel as intimidating as it did in that moment. Klaus picked up his pace, just barely avoiding tripping over his feet several times, before making a sharp turn to the right to enter a dark and deserted alleyway. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest, so fast now, that he could feel it pumping in every bit of his body.

He glanced back over his shoulder mid-run and noticed that the car drove right by the alleyway, the sound of its engine slowly getting quieter as it drove farther away.

“Phew..” Klaus panted, dropping into a squatting position to allow himself to catch his breath. He stayed like that for a long moment, willing his body to _breathe_ and for his mind to stop racing.

Klaus drew a long sigh, “close one, huh Ben?”

No response.

“Ben?”

He tilted his head from side to side but his ghost brother was nowhere in sight. He must have outrun him.

_Ah shit. He’ll find me._

Klaus shuddered and propped himself up against a large trashcan and let his head fall to rest on his it. He momentarily closed his eyes and let the cold wind cool his burning body, the feeling almost euphoric as adrenaline slowly pumped its way out.

Taking two deep breathes, filling his lungs with delicious cool air, Klaus lifted his head from the dirty surface it rested on and slowly opened his eyes, ready to continue on.

“Didn’t think you could actually run from us, now could you pretty boy?”

Klaus flinched violently at the sudden voice, his body reacting immediately and his senses springing to alert.

Standing directly in front of the exit of the alleyway were three of the men who sat in the café earlier. The one who spoke, who Klaus recognized as _Tony,_ was standing tall with crossed arms and an arrogant smirk on his face.

Instantly, Klaus moved to run backwards to the other exit but noticed that two other men were there waiting on the other side, effectively trapping him in the alley.

Klaus swallowed loudly and turned back towards the three men. He quickly morphed his expression from one of panic to one of casualness, throwing a charming smile back at the smirking men.

“ _Tony!_ Long time no see, how have you been? My I must say, that jacket looks _splendid_ on you! Where’d you get that?”

Tony scoffed and his smirk morphed into one of impatience, “I don’t have time for games today Klaus. You know why we’re here.”

Klaus’ forced down another swallow, thicker this time, forcing back a ball of panic that came with it to remain neutral.

“Ahh yes. I suppose I do know. What is it that I owe again? Twenty? Fifty bucks-?”

“You owe use two hundred bucks, kid.” one of Tony’s men interrupted mid sentence, voice as harsh as the cemented walls.

Klaus forced a laughter, “right! Well about that – see, I don’t exactly have _two hundred dollars_ on me right now – _but_ – if you give me two weeks, I can just-“

“Save it bitch. We want our money _now,”_ Tony all but snarled back, his arms unfolding slowly as he and his men began to advance on Klaus.

“Okay what about _one week-“_

_“_ Shut up, _whore_!”

Air and breath went silent, words sunk down dead. Klaus wanted to move but he couldn’t, and even if he wanted to, he was cornered and had nowhere to run. Fuck.

And where was _Ben?_ Why wasn’t he here by now? Without Ben, Klaus wasn’t sure if he could keep up his persona for much longer without breaking.  He wasn’t as brave without Ben around. His brother always knew what to say or do in these situations, and how to help him

Klaus didn’t even notice how close Tony had gotten until he could practically feel the man’s breath on his face.

“Woah woah woah, gentlemen! I’m sure we can figure something out!”

Tony simply grinned at the response, eyeing Klaus up and down in an animalistic way, and grabbed onto Klaus’ hair tightly so he was unable to move away.

“Oh, we have.”

He licked his lips before abusing Klaus’ own.

 

* * *

 

“Klaus!”

_…Ben?_

…

“Ben..”

_…_

“I-I’m gonna t-take a quick nap Ben…”

“No Klaus, you’ve lost a lot of blood. You need to stay awake!”

…

“…don’t wanna…”

“Well you better!”

…

 “I’m jus’ gonna close my eyes, m’kay…?”

...

_“No!”_

_..._

_Just a quick nap…_

_..._

_“Klaus!”_

_..._

_Won’t be long Ben…_

_..._

_“Kla-“_

The voice shouting at him was getting more and more muffled.

...

_“Kl…”_

_..._

_I’m sorry…_

_…_

And finally, Klaus’ eyes fell shut, and the rain poured on.

 

* * *

 

**_You have to get up._** Those were the words that Klaus heard, pounding through the darkness. **_You have to get up._ **And all that could cross his mind was:

_Get up?_

He wasn’t aware he had fallen. He couldn’t be on the ground. And he was fairly sure he knew that. The ground was cold, and hard, and uncomfortable, but he felt warm, not cold. He felt – wet? Wetness on his eyes, and now that he thought about it, his whole body was wet.

**_Don’t you dare._** The voice was back again, angry this time. Klaus felt like tilting his head, confusion settling in. Why would this voice be angry with him? What had he done? He wasn’t playing any tricks. Only take a quick nap. **_Don’t you dare!_** Angrier now.

What did this voice want from him?

**_Wake up!_** Ah, so that’s what it wanted. Klaus tried to shake his head but found that nothing would respond. He finally settled on just sighing. _Leave me alone,_ he wanted to say, _I’m tired._

But the voice ceased to leave him alone, now taking upon shouting. The voice shouted and shouted or him to **_Wakeupwakeupwakeup._** Klaus tried to squirm away from the sound and tried to cover his eyes, but his efforts were fruitless. The voice continued to shout.

_I don’t want to wake up! Five more minutes!_

The shouting seemed to get louder and louder, the voice relentless in its efforts. As the volume rose, Klaus felt a pounding in his head start to form. It got stronger and stronger, the pain becoming almost unbearable.

A violent wave of pain hit his head fast, and he found his sleep disturbed. And with that, Klaus opened his eyes and welcomes the world around him.

The world did not welcome him back.

The first thing he noticed that he _was_ in fact on the ground. Huh. The next thing he noticed was thick, dark red pool of blood he was laying in. _It’s warm,_ he thought.

He was on his stomach, face down in the blood, his body involuntarily shivering. He also noticed that his pants were absent and that there was a dull but painful ache in the areas he was exposed. His head felt as if a hammer was repeatedly slamming down on it, pounding so hard he could hardly collect his thoughts.

“Klaus.”

It was the voice from earlier. He recognized it. Ben.

Where _was_ Ben?

Klaus feebly lifted his head from the ground, every movement causing his body to protest in pain. Finally, he glanced his first look at his brother. Ben had been crouched beside Klaus, resting on his knees, a haunted expression plastered on his face.

“ _Idiot._ ”

At that statement Klaus couldn’t help but chuckle a sad chuckle, slowly moving his head to nod as if agreeing with it.

“...Hi.” Klaus finally settled on saying, his voice coming out horse and broken. He coughed weakly let his eyes rest shut for another moment in an attempt to calm the throbbing pain in his head.

God, _he ached._

“ _Hi,_ idiot.”

Klaus pouted weakly, “...h-heard you the first time bro,”

A violent shiver made its way through his body as suddenly a wave of cold air and cold rain hit him, as if his nerves had woken up and finally responded to his surroundings.

Slowly and carefully, Klaus rolled from his stomach onto his back. It took a tremendous amount of effort to achieve this simple task, and he had to stop a couple of times to catch his breath due to the sudden shots of pain coming from _all over his body._

Once he successfully made it onto his back, he tried to sit up but a sharp pain in his groin caused him to cease his efforts. He tried a couple more times before rendering it feasible and settling for laying on his back. He sighed deeply, forgetting for a moment that his _unusually quiet_ brother was still beside him, before turning his head around to get a better look at him.

Ben, to say the least, looked like he had seen better days. His face completely betrayed everything he was feeling; sorrow, anger, despair, guilt –

_Pity._

Klaus _hated_ when Ben looked at him with pity.

_“Thank God._ I thought you weren’t going to wake up – I thought-“ Ben started but cut himself off quickly, seemingly in conflict with himself as he chose his next words, “I thought you were gone. You didn’t look like you were breathing. After last summer, when you OD’d...”

“I just- I don’t want anything to happen to you. You’re my brother. I’m supposed to protect you, and look. All I can do it stand here and watch you get hurt and do nothing and-“ a swallow, “I’m so sorry Klaus, I wish I could do more for you. What just happened – I’m so disgusted, so _angry._ Fuck.”

Ben stopped his ramble and took a deep breath, trying to steady himself and his emotions. He knew he sounded like a broken record. 

And Klaus – Klaus just stared at him feebly, blood trailing down his forehead and into his eyebrows, his lips pulled into a small frown of concern.

 “Ben… are you okay?”

It took a minute for the words to sink in, and when they did, Ben wanted nothing more than to dissolve into the rain pouring through his ghostly body. His brother – his stupid, kind, shattered, selfless brother, a boy dragged through hell and back, who had every right to focus on himself and only himself and ignore Ben’s lingering issues – was trying to comfort _him._  

 “Y-yes,” he finally choked out although his composure said he was anything but.

“It’s… it’s okay,” Klaus responded, “s’not your fault… you really gotta stop apologizing when I let something shitty happen to myself, it’s really not your fault… and I’m okay too, don’t worry, been through worse y’know. “

As if to prove his point, Klaus further pushed his body up so he was sitting and slowly dragged himself backwards towards the wall. He gruffed in pain with every movement, eyes squinted closed in pain. He felt a presence next to him and opened his eyes to look at the cloud-heavy sky, and then to his brother who had slouched down beside him – close enough to _almost_ feel his warmth.

_I wish I could lean into him..._

“…hey, are you crying?...” Klaus asked groggily as he leaned back against the cold, concrete wall of the alleyway.

“N-no, it’s just rainwater…” Ben sniffed dismissively.

Even in his weakened, slightly delirious state, Klaus knew better than to point out that it had already stopped raining.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooo hey. Guys, I'm literally so sorry for not updating this story. I could go on a whole rant about how busy life is with work and college and exams but honestly, I just kind of lost interest in the Umbrella Academy for a while and didn't feel inspired to write. I had like half of this chapter ready and stopped writing, so I figured I might as well push through now that I have some down time.
> 
> It's definitely not my best work and I'm not super happy with it but I just want to get it up and out there for y'all, the people. I have no idea how to write a non con scene so I kinda skipped past that, I'm sorry. :( And the ending feels super rushed but ugh. I hope you guys still like it even if I don't.
> 
> Anyway, I'll do my best to keep updating this story as I already have some more prompt ideas I want to get out there!
> 
> See you guys soon. xx


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